nasturtium bitters

After remembering the nasturtium-infused gin we made last year, I decided to craft some cocktail bitters around this peppery tasting flower that grows around the border of our vegetable garden as well as elsewhere in our yard.
I used botanical to alcohol and water ratios from various recipes I found (and there is great variation through out the recipes) and chose my first recipe. Version 1 was similar to the recipe below and started out with a very good nasturtium and orange aroma during days 1-2. By days 4-5, it was way too bitter when used in a 3:1 Plymouth gin:Noilly Prat martini; in fact, it was horribly bitter. I ended up having to dump that batch and to scrap the milk thistle and cut back wormwood 5 fold. The experience taught me to pilot lot new recipes in the small scale -- such as the Celery Bitters that are ongoing which started as 6 jars of 1 oz size.
The recipe that I ended up going with and bottling:

Yarm's Nasturtium Bitters
• 12 oz Bacardi 151 rum
• 4 oz water
• 45 grams nasturtium flowers (wet weight)
• 10 grams dried orange peel
• 8 grams cardamom pods (sliced open)
• 7.5 grams cinnamon stick
• 5 grams gentian
• 1 gram wormwood
• 2 grams star anise
Let steep for 14 days.
• 12 oz water
• 30 grams nasturtium flowers (wet weight)
Muddle the flowers in a separate jar and store in fridge overnight.
Filter the alcohol portion through a coffee filter.
Wash the botanicals with the nasturtium water, and filter this wash. Combine with alcohol filtrate.
Bottle.

The recipe does not reflect that I added some of the botanicals after sampling them at day 4. I doubled the cinnamon and cardamom, added the star anise, upped the gentian from 1 to 5 grams, and added the 4 oz of water to keep the herbs submerged. One difference was between the first and second batches of bitters, it rained a lot and the flavor quality of the nasturtiums changed. The first were rather sharp and peppery, and the second were more tea-like akin to a rooibos which might be why I added the second round of botanicals.

My favorite recipe with them so far is:

Rum Old Fashioned
• 1 1/2 oz Medium-bodied rum (Ron Zacapa 15 year)
• 1/4 oz Gomme (or simple) syrup
• 2-3 dashes of Nasturtium bitters
Stir with ice and strain into a rocks glass.

Enjoy!

August 2010 post-script: I remade the bitters this year. It was a less rainy season this year, so the flowers had more flavor and aroma. I, therefore, scrapped the 12 ounces of muddle flower water and swapped in 6 ounces of water. I used a new batch of cinnamon that made this note more prominent; surprisingly, the cardamom (same batch) seems more dominant. Perhaps it was the muddling of the cardamom pods that helped.

[marconi wireless like drink]

Rittenhouse Rye
Apple Jack
Punt e Mes
1 dash Regan's Bitters

Stir with ice and strain into a cocktail glass. Squeeze orange peel over drink and float the peel as garnish.

For my last drink, Kevin wondered if I wanted to try another Pimm's cocktail off their menu or go with something else. When I replied with the latter, he smiled and disappeared to make me a drink based off of what I had drank preceding this one. When he returned, he presented it as a take on the Marconi Wireless, although with the rye in there it could be a Manhattan Wireless? I have no clue about the proportions he used for this drink, but with these ingredients, one could do no wrong with an equal 1:1:1 or perhaps a 3 applejack:2 rye:1 punt e mes plus the orange bitters.

In the end, it tasted like a maltier and spicier Marconi Wireless or a less apple-y Stone Fence.

rye and dry

1 oz Sazerac Rye
1 oz Pimm's No. 1
1 oz Dry Vermouth
1 dash Bittermen's Xocolatl Mole Bitters

Stir with ice and strain into a low ball (rocks) glass.

Hugh made my second drink of the night last Monday at Eastern Standard. I picked one off of their newly updated Lineage-Legacy menu which features Pimm's No. 1, the gin-based liqueur. Kevin had already suggested the Rye & Dry and one other one off their list for me, and the Rye & Dry seemed to follow best after the King's Yellow.

The drink was rather good but the Pimm's felt a little lost in the drink for me to make out what it tasted like. When Kevin checked in, a commented this to which he poured me a small taste of the Pimm's straight. The best I could compare it to is an amaro mixed with mainly gin.

Kit came by to discuss the new drinks with me and I pointed to their Dartmouth Cooler as probably being the best crafted one of the group, although I did not take note of the ingredients (nor has the Eastern Standard website been updated since the change last week).

While this drink is an Eastern Standard original, it is most like a nod to the older Rye & Dry cocktail which CocktailDB.com lists as 1 1/2 oz rye, 1 oz dry vermouth, and 1 dash orange bitters.

king's yellow

1 1/2 oz Bombay Sapphire Gin
3/4 oz Dry Vermouth
3/4 oz Benedictine
1 dash Orange Bitters (housemade)
Apricot-flavored Brandy rinse
Lemon twist

Stir with ice and strain into a cocktail glass pre-rinsed with apricot brandy. Garnish with a lemon twist.

On Monday, I met some friends for dinner before they went to the Red Sox game later that night. After I walked them to the entrance of Fenway, I rounded the corner and continued on to Eastern Standard where I was warmly welcomed by Kevin who made me my first drink.

They had just added the King's Yellow to the Standards part of their menu and redid their Lineage-Legacy menu to have Pimm's cocktails -- all new as of that day; Kit later wondered if I came in just to taste the new cocktails (as if I knew in advance of the menu update). I went with the King's Yellow to start. It was very similar to a cocktail I have made at home, the Caprice, save for a little more vermouth and Benedictine and the addition of the apricot brandy and lemon twist. While the lemon oils and upped proportions of the vermouth and Benedictine were a great addition to this cocktail, the apricot flavor was a little trampled upon by the Benedictine. Especially since the apricot bell ringer that No. 9 does with their Martini-variant is rather faint without the Benedictine in the cocktail. Kevin likened the cocktail in essence to the Alaska.

It was funny how just last week I had mentioned to Andrea how I used to make a lot of cocktails with Benedictine and lately very few. I wondered if it was me favoring other bitters, and she pointed out that she found it to be more of a fall/winter liqueur. So perhaps this makes King's Yellow (drank on Labor Day) this year's harbinger of autumn...

rosita

rosita the first

1 oz. tequila
1 oz. Campari
1/2 oz. sweet vermouth
1/2 oz. dry vermouth
1 dash Regan's orange bitters #6

Pour all the ingredients into a large old-fashioned glass filled with crushed ice. Stir and add an orange twist.

rosita the second

1 oz. tequila
1 oz. Campari
1/2 oz. sweet vermouth
1/2 oz. dry vermouth

Stir and strain into a cocktail glass. Garnish with an orange wheel.

I will now relate to you the tale of the rival Rositas.

Last Tuesday we decided that the evening was too lovely to waste sitting indoors, so we walked over to the Independent in Union Square for cocktails. The Rosita Liam deftly mixed up for me was terribly pretty, with a a strong Campari flavor and barely any tequila flavor. I liked the drink much more after some of the ice had melted, and the tequila recovered somewhat. The (welcome) addition of the bitters gave the drink nice long citrus-tingly finish. Liam was more than happy to share the recipe, which I've related above as Rosita the first.

The next night, I found myself with my friend Julia at Green Street in Central. I spotted the Rosita on the expanded menu and decided to order it to compare with my experience the night before. It certainly was tasty, but I definitely prefer it with the ice and orange bitters.

I tried to do a bit of research on the origin of the Rosita. Once again sfgate.com turned out to be my most trusted source - no big surprise once you learn that the author of the cocktail is Gary Regan. He based the recipe on a 1988 edition of Mr. Boston Official Bartender's Guide. His tinkering upped the tequila to 1 1/2 oz., and he added Angostura bitters instead of his eponymous orange #6.

I think the Rosita the first recipe hews much more closely to Regan's vision. Well done, Indo crew!

seelbach

1 oz Bourbon (Maker's Mark was used)
1/2 oz Cointreau
7 dashes Angostura bitters
7 dashes Peychaud's bitters
5 oz Champagne (Cava was used)

Stir first 4 ingredients in a champagne flute, and then add the sparkling wine and stir again. Garnish with an orange twist. From Ted Haigh's Vintage Spirits & Forgotten Cocktails.

Fred's litmus cocktail is the Pegu Club. Mine is the Seelbach, and oh what a convoluted relationship I have with it. I first tasted one in my very own kitchen last fall, made with tender loving care by Fred. I disliked it. Intensely. This baffled me, since I like bitters, bourbon, Cointreau, and champagne, very much. I thought that maybe my tastebuds were being too girlie about the hefty addition of the bitters. So, of course, I felt compelled to try it again at some point in the future, after my tastebuds had been re-calibrated.

Several months later I found myself at Green Street, with Andy behind the bar. It was warm out and I wanted something refreshing and somewhat lighter in alcohol, so I requested a Seelbach. It was absolutely delightful, and exactly what I wanted it to taste like. When I asked Any what the secret was, he told me Misty's recipe backed off to 4 dashes each of the Angostura and Peychaud's. I was a little bit disappointed about this, since I really wanted to like the unmodified recipe.

My third Seelbach was made by Tom at Eastern Standard - a more gifted bartender I couldn't ask for. I disliked it. Intensely. WTF was going on? He used the classic recipe, and it just tasted far too dry and vaguely chemical-y for me. How could 3 (ok 6) leetle dashes make such a big difference?

To confuse things even further, when I went back to Green Street and ordered another one from Andy, he insisted that in fact they use the full 7 dashes of each. Perhaps it's the choice of champagne that skews the taste for me (Green Street uses Segura Viudas Cava, I think). Perhaps his dashes are calibrated differently from Tom's or Fred's. Either way, Andy's Seelbach became the gold standard for me.

So, I thought I kept the note of trepidation out of my voice when I ordered one the other night at Rendezvous. But then Fred spoiled it with an evil little laugh, and the comment that I'm very picky when it comes to this cocktail. I might have looked slightly worried when Scott free-poured the bourbon and the Cointreau, and dammitall if I didn't count the dashes dispensed. He topped it off with cava, gave it a quick stir, and asked me if I wanted the garnish (I politely declined).

My reaction: not bad (did I say that out loud? I can't remember.) Not bad at all. There was the tiniest hint of the chemical flavor I'd noted many times before, but otherwise it was perfectly balanced, and after several more sips I could barely taste that anymore. I think the bartender mistook my hesitation for disappointment, so I was quick to reassure him that I liked it.

I'm so delightfully happy that I can order one now at someplace besides Green Street (sorry Andy, but a girl's got needs).

nehru

Saffron-infused Gin
Lemon-Cardamom Simple Syrup
Orange Twist

Pour into a rocks glass with ice. Mix. Garnish with an orange twist peeled over the drink.

For my second drink last night at Rendezvous, I asked Scott if he had an idea for my next drink -- something that he had been experimenting with lately. He rather excitedly said that he did, and I told him to make it for me without needing to tell me what it would be. I watched as he took out an unlabeled, yellow liquid-containing bottle and another bottle that I knew was some sort of simple syrup. The former was a saffron-infused gin that Scott had made based on a once lost late 1800's recipe. The rest of the drink he sculpted around some of the other flavors in kulfi, and the end product was quite delightful. The herbal components were rather well balanced such that no one dominated the mouth, and the nose was filled with the pleasant smell of the orange oils. Definitely one of the most innovative old fashions that I have had.

Edit 9/4/08: at the time, the drink entry was referred to as "kulfi-esque gin old fashioned" but I updated it since the drink now appears on the Rendezvous menu.

half sinner, half saint

2 oz Sweet Vermouth
2 oz Dry Vermouth
1 barspoon Pastis
Lemon Twist

In a rocks glass with ice, pour both vermouths and mix. Garnish with a lemon twist peeled over the drink. Float the pastis on top.

Last night, Andrea and I went to Rendezvous in Central Square (Cambridge, MA) where Scott Holliday was bartending. I had vermouths on my mind after reading the SFGate article that Andrea had emailed me earlier in the day, and went with the Half Sinner-Half Saint that I spotted on the cocktail menu. John Gertsen of No. 9 Park was the first to introduce me to this cocktail as a nightcap sometime last fall.

Scott's version used Noilly Pratt dry vermouth, Cinzano sweet vermouth, and Henri Bardouin pastis. He went a lot lighter on the pastis than the CocktailDB recipe suggests which is a 1/2 oz of herbsaint. Perhaps the lesser amount used for this menu item was to make it more accessible; however, there was definitely enough to deliver the anise flavor. The larger than average lemon twist added a wonderful aroma to the glass (Scott later explained last night his focus a lot on the smells of a drink as he creates a cocktail). And visually, the white cloudy louche on the top of the drink from the pastis makes an angelic halo which probably makes up the saint part of this drink. Which leaves to guess that the vermouths are the sinner (especially how many people avoid them like the devil in their drinks)? Update 7/9/26: A Boston ex-pat inquired about the history of the drink, and my reply was, "It seems that it has New Orleans heritage with evidence pointing to Ken Jackson creating it at Herbsaint in the time frame of 2000-05. The two big Boston personalities who loved the drink were John Gertsen and Scott Holliday, and we were introduced to it in 2008. By 2007, Gertsen had already made trips down to New Orleans to take back drink culture including learning his Sazerac technique from Paul Gustings at Tujague's." And "It also shares similarities to the classic New Orleans drink Old Hickory (Famous New Orleans Drinks & How to Mix 'Em from 1937) with Peychaud's in the mix instead of a pastis/Herbsaint float."
Update 7/27/26: I added a photo I found on my Facebook with the subtitle, "A Half Sinner Half Saint I made during the goodbye happy hour" for Cocktails in the Country on May 12, 2015.

[unnamed, oddly tasty concoction]

(equal parts?)
Amer Picon
Yellow Chartreuse
Rye (Michter's)
a dash or two of mole bitters

(garnished? I don't remember! An hour after having this drink I dropped my phone in the loo so, um, yeah: hi!)

This drink had that wonderful chilling/warm fuzzy-nosed sensation I adore. I was having an upbeat time drinking alone with The American Way of Death Revisited at Eastern Standard last Monday before going off to a club to dance (and to drown my mobile, apparently), and did that thing that I can't decide if Hugh finds interesting or annoying: which is, to demand something new and tasty with little to no criteria given. I'm usually always game for this, as he has never yet steered me wrong (in fact, he possesses excellent drinks-ESP) and in this case, he came up with this lovely little thing. I'm continually amazed at Yellow's ability to not only stand up to other ingredients in a drink, but to blossom so well in concert with them.